Many have heard about a new sitcom on Fox premiring on Jan 10th called "Enlisted".

If you've seen the trailer, you're likely upset, angry, maybe even outraged. And you'd be right to. There are a ton of errors and it's a bit of a travesty. And the show's creators heard the complaints loud and clear.

Kevin Biegel was recently interviewed in a chat set up by "DoctrineMan" on Facebook. The chat is pretty freewheeling (as Facebook discussions are wont to be). I extracted some questions from it to share here:

So how do you hope to win over the cynical who see this (another) brazen attempt to profit off of the military meme?

KB: All I can do is hope people see the show, give it a chance, and realize where it's coming from and see it's very personal, very heartfelt and not ever, every trying to "mock" anything. I didn't want to do a satire, we just wanted to write something about a place we love and characters we loved... so that's the show. I think shows that you're referring to you can kinda tell when it's not coming from a heartfelt place, you know?

What is the military background of the writers of the show? (and, if not, did//will THEY get some military hands-on like the key cast members did?)

KB: Aside from myself a lot of the writers have military in their families. A writer in the room at almost all times was a Lt in the Navy. We didn't send the writers to the mini Boot Camp the actors went to - we just couldn't make it b/c we were writing the show - but we want to go if there's a season 2. I did give the writers more research to read than any show I've ever been on. A mountain of books, blogs, and also transcripts of interviews I did with my military friends. No one walked into this with zero education. That said, we have a LOT to learn and the more hands on we can be, the better the show will be.

What serious issue(s) would you'd like to tackle through the medium of the show?

KB: We deal with PTS as a main thing for the main character on the show, survivor guilt, and also deal with the fear of having a loved one overseas / of losing that loved one (the brothers’ father died in combat). My biggest hope for the show is we connect with a big audience in that area. I care more about that than jokes, really.

Is (the show written) in the vein of Stripes or Sgt. Bilko? Or would you say you are closer to MASH?

KB: It's definitely more in the vein of Stripes. For a little bit when I was writing the pilot, I had Stripes on loop on a TV in the background. I'd say even more, though, it's something like Stripes but with some Scrubs thrown in - i didn't want it to be all jokey wacky stuff, I felt it had to have real emotion and deal with some tougher things if it was going to be a show set in the military in 2014. If we are 1/100th the show MASH was, we'd be lucky. That's all time great. What I want to do that's like that show, though (and honestly like Scrubs where I worked for years) is combine comedy with real emotional moments. The main character on this show came close to biting it a few times, and I wanted that to be reflected in a real way - not a "this guy wasn't affected by war" way. So there will be quieter moments here hopefully have honest emotional content that means something to the military community and, honestly and hopefully, to the non-military community

Please: no female Goldie Hawn character. But it does beg the question; will the show touch on SHARP? Give thought to reinforcing stereotypes? The bumbling GO etc.?

KB: I promise no Goldie Hawn character. The main female character is squared away and confident - not neurotic or bumbling. As for SHARP, that's an area I want to explore but only after the audience knows these characters. I want to build to it, so when we do those stories it means more b/c you know the characters.

The trailer makes it look like most of the NCO's besides the brother are unable or unfit to handle the unit the brother is handling. Is this on purpose or incidental?

KB: That's just the trailer... it's made really clear a lot that these guys are the anomaly. Most everyone else on this post is super squared away. But our guys always try to get better, and a lot do.

Some episodes will mean more to you than others. Which episode should we be most looking forward to?

KB: I think in this first group of episodes, the one about Sgt. Hill and his Airstream is what I'm most looking forward to people seeing. I love all the episodes and we worked really hard on them, but that one is the first that (hopefully) shows that we're gonna be a little deeper sometimes and try to deal with some heavier issues. I don't ever, ever want to be preachy - I just want to be honest to what we feel these characters would go through. And that episode is the first that just slows down and shows (again, hopefully) that we're not some wacky silly non-stop goofball of a show.

In acknowledging the errors from the initial couple of episodes, the show is doing something interesting and refreshing - they are owning up to it up front. I applaud that.

The primary cast even spent a few days working with the Army to get their minds right for their roles and it was some significant discovery learning. There's videos here that document their time at Fort Bliss.

I think this show is worth your time, as long as you realize the first couple of episodes were shot before they realized that veterans and Soldiers were watching and not pleased with the initial effort. I think Kevin is serious about finding that balance between entertainment and honoring our Nation's enlisted Soldiers.

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Enlisted - The new comedy on Fox...

Many have heard about a new sitcom on Fox premiring on Jan 10th called "Enlisted".

If you've seen the trailer, you're likely upset, angry, maybe even outraged. And you'd be right to. There are a ton of errors and it's a bit of a travesty. And the show's creators heard the complaints loud and clear.

Kevin Biegel was recently interviewed in a chat set up by "DoctrineMan" on Facebook. The chat is pretty freewheeling (as Facebook discussions are wont to be). I extracted some questions from it to share here:

So how do you hope to win over the cynical who see this (another) brazen attempt to profit off of the military meme?

KB: All I can do is hope people see the show, give it a chance, and realize where it's coming from and see it's very personal, very heartfelt and not ever, every trying to "mock" anything. I didn't want to do a satire, we just wanted to write something about a place we love and characters we loved... so that's the show. I think shows that you're referring to you can kinda tell when it's not coming from a heartfelt place, you know?

What is the military background of the writers of the show? (and, if not, did//will THEY get some military hands-on like the key cast members did?)

KB: Aside from myself a lot of the writers have military in their families. A writer in the room at almost all times was a Lt in the Navy. We didn't send the writers to the mini Boot Camp the actors went to - we just couldn't make it b/c we were writing the show - but we want to go if there's a season 2. I did give the writers more research to read than any show I've ever been on. A mountain of books, blogs, and also transcripts of interviews I did with my military friends. No one walked into this with zero education. That said, we have a LOT to learn and the more hands on we can be, the better the show will be.

What serious issue(s) would you'd like to tackle through the medium of the show?

KB: We deal with PTS as a main thing for the main character on the show, survivor guilt, and also deal with the fear of having a loved one overseas / of losing that loved one (the brothers’ father died in combat). My biggest hope for the show is we connect with a big audience in that area. I care more about that than jokes, really.

Is (the show written) in the vein of Stripes or Sgt. Bilko? Or would you say you are closer to MASH?

KB: It's definitely more in the vein of Stripes. For a little bit when I was writing the pilot, I had Stripes on loop on a TV in the background. I'd say even more, though, it's something like Stripes but with some Scrubs thrown in - i didn't want it to be all jokey wacky stuff, I felt it had to have real emotion and deal with some tougher things if it was going to be a show set in the military in 2014. If we are 1/100th the show MASH was, we'd be lucky. That's all time great. What I want to do that's like that show, though (and honestly like Scrubs where I worked for years) is combine comedy with real emotional moments. The main character on this show came close to biting it a few times, and I wanted that to be reflected in a real way - not a "this guy wasn't affected by war" way. So there will be quieter moments here hopefully have honest emotional content that means something to the military community and, honestly and hopefully, to the non-military community

Please: no female Goldie Hawn character. But it does beg the question; will the show touch on SHARP? Give thought to reinforcing stereotypes? The bumbling GO etc.?

KB: I promise no Goldie Hawn character. The main female character is squared away and confident - not neurotic or bumbling. As for SHARP, that's an area I want to explore but only after the audience knows these characters. I want to build to it, so when we do those stories it means more b/c you know the characters.

The trailer makes it look like most of the NCO's besides the brother are unable or unfit to handle the unit the brother is handling. Is this on purpose or incidental?

KB: That's just the trailer... it's made really clear a lot that these guys are the anomaly. Most everyone else on this post is super squared away. But our guys always try to get better, and a lot do.

Some episodes will mean more to you than others. Which episode should we be most looking forward to?

KB: I think in this first group of episodes, the one about Sgt. Hill and his Airstream is what I'm most looking forward to people seeing. I love all the episodes and we worked really hard on them, but that one is the first that (hopefully) shows that we're gonna be a little deeper sometimes and try to deal with some heavier issues. I don't ever, ever want to be preachy - I just want to be honest to what we feel these characters would go through. And that episode is the first that just slows down and shows (again, hopefully) that we're not some wacky silly non-stop goofball of a show.

In acknowledging the errors from the initial couple of episodes, the show is doing something interesting and refreshing - they are owning up to it up front. I applaud that.

The primary cast even spent a few days working with the Army to get their minds right for their roles and it was some significant discovery learning. There's videos here that document their time at Fort Bliss.

I think this show is worth your time, as long as you realize the first couple of episodes were shot before they realized that veterans and Soldiers were watching and not pleased with the initial effort. I think Kevin is serious about finding that balance between entertainment and honoring our Nation's enlisted Soldiers.

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The Authors

Former Paratrooper and Army Officer, "Blackfive" started this blog upon learning of the valorous sacrifice of a friend that was not reported by the journalist whose life he saved. Email: blackfive AT gmail DOT com

Instapinch
Bill Paisley, otherwise known as Pinch, is a 22 year (ongoing) active and
reserve naval aviator. He blogs over at www.instapinch.com on a veritable
cornucopia of various and sundry items and will bring a tactical naval
aviator's perspective to Blackfive. Readers be warned: any comments of or
about the F-14 Tomcat will be reverential and spoken in low, hushed tones.
Email: wpaisley AT comcast DOT net

Mr. Wolf has over 26 years in the Army, Army NG, and USAR. He’s Airborne with 5 years as an NCO, before becoming an officer. Mr. Wolf has had 4 company commands. Signal Corp is his basic branch, and Public Affairs is his functional area. He recently served 22 straight months in Kuwait and Iraq, in Intel, PA, and senior staff of MNF-I. Mr. Wolf is now an IT executive. He is currently working on a book on media and the Iraq war. Functional gearhead.

In Iraq, he received the moniker of Mr. Wolf after the Harvey Kietel character in Pulp Fiction, when "challenges" arose, they called on Mr. Wolf...
Email: TheDOTMrDOTWolfAT gmail DOT com

Deebow is a Staff Sergeant and a Military Police Squad Leader in the Army National Guard. In a previous life, he served in the US Navy. He has over 19 years of experience in both the Maritime and Land Warfare; including deployments to Southwest Asia, Thailand, the South Pacific, South America and Egypt. He has served as a Military Police Team Leader and Protective Services Team Leader and he has served on assignments with the US State Department, US Air Force Security Police, US Army Criminal Investigation Division, and the US Drug Enforcement Administration. He recently spent time in Afghanistan working with, training and fighting alongside Afghan Soldiers and is now focused on putting his 4 year Political Science degree to work by writing about foreign policy, military security policy and politics.

McQ has 28 years active and reserve service. Retired. Infantry officer. Airborne and Ranger. Consider my 3 years with the 82nd as the most fun I ever had with my clothes on. Interests include military issues and policy and veteran's affairs.
Email: mcq51 -at - bellsouth -dot- net

Tantor is a former USAF navigator/weapon system officer (WSO) in F-4E Phantoms who served in the US, Asia, and Europe. He is now a curmudgeonly computer geek in Washington, DC, picking the taxpayers pocket. His avocations are current events, aviation, history, and conservative politics.

Twenty-three years of Active and Reserve service in the US Army in SF (18B), Infantry and SOF Signal jobs with operational deployments to Bosnia and Africa. Since retiring he's worked as Senior Defense Analyst on SOF and Irregular Warfare projects and currently ensconced in the emerging world of Cyberspace.

The Authors Emeritus

Major Pain --
A Marine who began his blog in Iraq and reflects back on what he learned there and in Afghanistan. To the point opinions, ideas and thoughts on military, political and the media from One Marine’s View.Email: onemarinesview AT yahoo DOT com

Uber Pig was an Infantryman from late 1991 until early 1996, serving with Second Ranger Battalion, I Corps, and then 25th Infantry Division. At the time, the Army discriminated against enlisted soldiers who wanted use the "Green to Gold" program to become officers, so he left to attend Stanford University. There, he became expert in detecting, avoiding, and surviving L-shaped ambushes, before dropping out to be as entrepreneurial as he could be. He is now the founder of a software startup serving the insurance and construction industries, and splits time between Lake Tahoe, Boonville, and San Francisco, CA.

Uber Pig writes for Blackfive a) because he's the proud brother of an enlisted Civil Affairs Reservist who currently serves in Iraq, b) because he looks unkindly on people who make it harder for the military in general, and for his brother in particular, to succeed at their missions and come home in victory, and c) because the Blackfive readers and commenters help keep him sane.

COB6 spent 24 years in the active duty Army that included 5 combat tours with service in the 1st Ranger Battalion and 1st Special Forces Group . COB6 was enlisted (E-7) and took the OCS route to a commission. COB6 retired a few years back as a field grade Infantry officer.
Currently COB6 has a son in the 82nd Airborne that just returned from his third tour and has a newly commissioned daughter in the 4th Infantry Division.